Still related to this issue, I found a site that sends equipment to Portugal..
Http://www.sigma4less.com (anyone can vouch for this site?).
The items are sent by UPS. Will they pass through customs or the already paid shipping fee is the only extra price I pay?.
Profile: http://www.flickr.com/people/yvo1978/Gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/yvo1978/..
Bringing back your camera equipment out of box should not be a problem. Put a memory card in the camera, and attach the lens. Put batteries in the flash....
Hide the receipt, etc., and forget about sending your camera to the US for warranty work. Your savings would be erased!.
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UPS and other shippers have a reputation for charging enormous sums for "customs brokerage," but don't warn the sender/seller about this, so they cannot warn you. The brokerage fee could easily exceed 20% of the cost of the goods.See how Sigma4less is rated: http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Sigma_4_Less.
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Most countries (if not all) require to you itemize your purchases and will then charge the applicable tax upon returning to your home country. Whether or not you declare your purchases made outside of your home country is your choice, and will determine if you will or will not have to pay those taxes..
Tim'Be the change you wish to see in the world.' -Mahatma Gandhihttp://www.flickr.com/photos/timskis6/..
AmanitaM wrote:.
Bringing back your camera equipment out of box should not be aproblem. Put a memory card in the camera, and attach the lens. Putbatteries in the flash...Hide the receipt, etc., and forget about sending your camera to theUS for warranty work. Your savings would be erased!.
In short, I should buy the camera in my country (because of warranty)..
Instead of sending the camera directly to Canon USA or Nikon USA, I could send it to my friend and he would take care of that. How would that work?.
How about that same friend acquiring the equipment and send it to Portugal? How would that affect prices on customs and such? With the unpackaged stuff and no price tags anywhere....
Profile: http://www.flickr.com/people/yvo1978/Gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/yvo1978/..
Timskis6 wrote:.
Most countries (if not all) require to you itemize your purchases andwill then charge the applicable tax upon returning to your homecountry. Whether or not you declare your purchases made outside ofyour home country is your choice, and will determine if you will orwill not have to pay those taxes..
Yes, I think people who get out of Portugal (to the US) must declare the items they're carrying. But what happens if that same person happens to buy a set of photographic gear and get it inside a proper bag, to bring back here? What will he pay for it, in the worst possible scenario?.
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There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. Your friend MAY be able to convince the Portugese customs chaps that the gear is his and he's had it awhile, thus avoiding your import duty charges. It will work as long as they don't check serial numbers or want to see him use it. It might work... The downside is that international freight charges are horrendously expensive - check with the local post office people as to what it will cost to send a camera body, with insurance, to the US to get your 'free' warranty work done - I bet you'll get a shock when you hear the price..
Buy locally - that way you'll always have a face that you know when you need more stuff or help with the stuff you already have. And you're creating wealth and employment locally.Rob.
Everyone, everywhere, has to do everything for a first time. There is no failure in failure, only in failing to learn...
That the import duty would be payable (whatever it is in Portugal - check with customs) and maybe an extra charge if it's discovered that you didn't declare it when you first arrived - a fine, if you want to call it that. Check with customs, they're the people in the know.Rob.
Everyone, everywhere, has to do everything for a first time. There is no failure in failure, only in failing to learn...
Your friend enters Portugal with your camera equipment. Portuguese Customs requires him to list equipment and serial numbers on an official form. This is to ensure he is not bringing the cameras, etc. into the country for the purpose of reselling them. I believe listing cameras with serial numbers, with minor variations, is standard when entering many countries. He then has two choices.
Or he can leave without the equipment. Hell be detained, interrogated and possibly incarcerated briefly. If he cant produce the camera, etc. hell be heavily fined but probably wont spend jail time. He will then be included on various international watch lists for his criminal activity, including the U.S.
This means hell be subject to extreme airport delays, searches and additional scrutiny whenever he travels. He probably wont be your friend any more. Is this worse case enough for you?..
I'm thinking on buying the camera here (mainly because of warranty) and maybe a couple lens with him in the US, along with a bag pack and a Memory Card..
He owns a Canon Rebel XT, so there's not a problem with carrying or managing the lens, if asked..
The prices here are outrageous. Example, a Canon Rebel XTi is $622.95 at B&H, and $906 + shipping in one of the most cheaper stores online here..
Same goes for any other gear, that's why I wanted to get some opinions, especially from europeans like myself..
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I don't know which planet these guys are from but it doesn't resemble the one we live on. Portuguese customs do not require visitors (or returning residents) to itemise what they have in their luggage (camera, electric shaver, PDA ...), let alone provide serial numbers, let alone check the goods against the serial numbers. How many cameras go through Lisboa airport every day? How long would checking them take?.
There is no risk and no downside. Do not pay the outrageous European price. If enough people refuse they may, possibly, get the message...
Any European here who have done this? Would like some opinions with facts backing up .
I agree with you, but what can we do? If I didn't know a person living there (who comes here a few times), I would have to pay and shut up... Buying in the US wouldn't even be an option..
Since I have this option, I might as well take advantage of it. It's not like I'm smuggling drugs or anything!...Profile: http://www.flickr.com/people/yvo1978/Gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/yvo1978/..
Its always a risk... the wife of a friend of mine brought him a camera from the US (to austria). she didn't get checked, so all went well. OTOH, if she would have been checked, she would probably have had to pay the duties plus a fine. in rare cases, customs (probably depending on national laws) might even confiscate the goods....
Mail-ordering: in my country, customs charge taxes not only on the product, but also on the estimated sum you paid for packing plus postage - so mail-order from outside the EU rarley pays off. of course, if you're friend were a diplomat, then....
Http://sternbild.zenfolio.com (gallery)http://schaffnerlos.blogspot.com (Vienna - image & text blog - in German)..
The background...i am Portuguese and ihave a relative that is an US resident. My family travels a few times to the US and I did it also..
Best case scenario:.
Nobody asks your friend anything and you get the items for the US price. I don't know about warranty, nothing I brought ever broke..
Bad scenario:.
Somebody in Portugal ASKS about a brand new looking electronic device...the explanation doesn't convince them and you end up paying about 30% more that purchase price (21%VAT+import duty+something else).
Worse scenarios:.
The above happens on a different contry where Portuguese have less than good reputations (i travel a lot trough Paris). You may loose the item (confiscated) or pay even more..
In Portugal there is a "False Declarations" law that may impose a heavy fine if "importing undeclared goods", but I never heard of an actual fine having been imposed due to a camera or similar.(The usual argument is not knowing about import duties...they know it is a lie but are used to it and don't press the issue).
Worst Case Scenario:.
IF your friend is on a very bad day he may end up giving a lot of explanations and paying a somewhat big fine, but I would estimate the probabillity as being under 1% (but it can happen)..
In practice:.
From my experinece (looking at what happens when crossing customs) less than 10% of people coming from the US are actually stopped at customs...so you have a 90% chance of all going well..
The only time things went wrong was when the official detected the original box of a brand new watch inside the bags...and he hadn't noticed the watch until then. The result...the mentioned 30% over the original price...as stated on the invoice..
I passed through customs with a camera, camcorder and laptop and most times they don't even stop me. The one time they did, I didn't even had to show the actual devices (all bags were rather used)..
My advice to your friend:Don't overdo it - bring just one or two items.Act casual...you have nothing to declare.Be polite...offcials react very badly to pressure..
If pressed and if your friend works or studies on the US (and has a return ticket) he may say that he bought the item on the US but he intends to take it back as he is considering immigration...i doubt they would press the issue..
And finally...make sure it is worth the hassle...buying online in Europe is sometimes almost as cheap as buying in the US....
By mail or UPS-like companies...if coming from the US they will almost surely CHARGE DUTIES over the declared price AND mail costs...that the shipping company MUST declare...
Just a clarification...the items I mentioned as going through customs were bought in Portugal...but I was worried as I had noway of proving this...now I actually take a invoice of all brand-new looking devices..
A family member at one time had to pay taxes on a Camera that he bought in Portugal because he took it to Hong-Kong and on the return trip they didn't believe it wasn't bought there (and he had no way to prove them wrong)..
Yes, my friend is studying there, and will have a return ticket, he's coming home with his wife for xmas and guess what, she has a camera of her own... don't know if at that time they're more strict or something..
Hope not..
If anyone has any other experience, please step forward .
EDIT: They're both studying there (and working).Profile: http://www.flickr.com/people/yvo1978/Gallery: http://www.flickr.com/photos/yvo1978/..